Greggs unit at Knutsford, situated next to the Northbound staircase, opposite the large seating area. Greggs would’ve opened at Knutsford around 2013 and is a rare example of a Greggs situated indoors, with a seating area opposite. Due to tax reasons, Moto typically position Greggs away from customer seating areas as not offering the option of eat in food meant Greggs was exempt from VAT. To separate this Greggs from the opposite seating, barriers have been used and signage has been put up suggesting customer seating on the footbridge is reserved for KFC (and when it opens, the new Pret A Manger). Installing Greggs on the footbridge meant Moto only needed to add one unit to Knutsford, as traffic from both directions can make use of this footbridge. Greggs is a highly popular facility at Moto sites due to their low pricing structures, making it affordable for all and more popular than Costa, which charge roughly double the price for similar products. Greggs offers customers baked snacks, and varies from other brands at Knutsford. This means the brand doesn’t experience much competition, especially compared to KFC and Burger King. Greggs has proven successful in the UK and is commonly seen along British roads. This Greggs replaced a small amount of seating here, which wasn’t really required as EDC was loosing popularity. Moto’s successful usage of Greggs has caused additional, similar brands like Pret and The Cornish Bakery to be opened at services. Although not open 24 hrs, Greggs is available at Knutsford between 5am & 9pm, making it especially useful for early morning drivers wanting a breakfast. The store was also well-stocked as I visited, which is surprising for a Greggs at lunch time. It’s likely that when Pret opens in March, this Greggs will experience a small loss of trade. Greggs was fairly busy during my visit today, as was this bridge-based food court. Greggs seems to be popular any time of the day as their products aren’t hugely meal-time specific. Greggs is signposted from the M6 in both directions, so all customers of Knutsford know it’s available, but might not expect it on the footbridge based on other, local Moto sites. Greggs isn’t advertised much around the site, other than in the Northbound/Southbound extensions where direction signs have been installed informing customers what brands are on the footbridge.

Photo taken on 10/02/2024 by Tom Moon.

Assigned to galleries: Knutsford, Greggs, M6 (England), Moto